Withdraw (above) and Dieppe Park both sustained heavy damage to trees during and after the ice storm two years ago.

In the face of rapid, man-made climate change, Toronto’s parks are facing some major challenges. This is especially true around soil erosion, soil compaction, changing bio-diversity and most importantly, tree canopies.

As many of you know, I’m a student of AGW (Anthropogenic Global Warming) and I’ve just finished a little course sponsored by the World Bank Group. You might be interested in one of my video artifacts– dealing specifically with Toronto Parks. It speaks directly to the challenges and ways to overcome those challenges as we drift towards the year 2050. I hope you’re inspired – at least a little ~ Ed.

Taken a few days ago, you can clearly see the shape of the pleasure rink with it’s rounded triangular surface with an island in the middle. On the east side of the fieldhouse, you can now see progress on the portico as the steel beams go up.

All the curves of the pleasure rink have a radius of at least 23 feet. Any less and the Zamboni would not be able to clean the ice.

You can clearly see the “island” in the middle of the rink.

Looking east towards the fieldhouse. The wall has been taken out and will soon be replaced with a glass curtain.

The portico on the east entrance door of the fieldhouse is taking shape.

Richard Louv is Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Children & Nature Network. He is the author of eight books, including “The Nature Principle: Reconnecting with Life in a Virtual Age” and “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder” which have been translated into 12 languages and published in 17 countries.

Sitting is the new smoking. That’s a useful new buzz-phrase for what some health experts are calling the “pandemic of inactivity.” Continue reading →

Billionaire John Paulson’s $100 million donation to New York’s Central Park Conservancy threw into relief inequities between parks frequented by the wealthy and those in less affluent neighborhoods.

Paulson said the gift, announced Oct. 23, would enhance the city’s most democratic institution, enjoyed by 40 million visitors a year. The founder of Paulson & Co., a New York-based hedge fund, said he played in the park as a child. Now, at 56, he enjoys a treetop view of its expanse from his residence on Fifth Avenue. Continue reading →